First Comes Love, Then Come Puppies
by awolfcomeshome
Summary: In which Beth adopts four puppies and Daryl can't stay mad at her. Bethyl prompt from anonymous on tumblr. AU.


**Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim all rights and responsibility for the characters and for The Walking Dead.**

**In correspondence to the prompt; _au where beth adopts 4 puppies and daryl pretends to be angry but can't stay mad at her._**

"Beth."

"No."

"Beth, we can't-"

"I've already said no."

"But we-"

"I'm not _doing_ it!"

He sighed, forehead landing on the closed bathroom door with a soft thump.

The doorknob squeaked as it turned and Daryl stepped away to let the door swing open. Out came a petite blonde with a pastel yellow coloured towel wrapped around her body, damp hair spread out over her shoulders. "I really don't see what the problem is," she said with a shrug and moved across their apartment. "You're the one who said it was getting a little quiet in here, lately."

He rolled his eyes and followed her into their bedroom. "'Cause your singin' career started takin' more of your time. But Beth…" He gestured to the basket in the corner of their room. "_Animals_?"

"Puppies." She corrected him, sitting on their bed and opened a bottle of body lotion.

"And not just two puppies, _four _- _puppies_." He held up four fingers and pointed at them.

"I thought you liked puppies!"

Daryl paced in front of her while she gently and patiently applied lotion to her shoulders and upper chest, as if he wasn't there and as if they weren't having this current conversation. It got on his nerves and he didn't know whether he wanted to shake her or kiss her.

"Don't mean I want 'em in my house," he mumbled with a dark, raspy voice.

"_Apartment_, darling."

"Yeah, whatever."

After a small moment of silence Beth looked up from applying lotion to her bare leg and realized Daryl was staring down at her, arms crossed, with a no-nonsense look on his face. Beth held back a chuckle; so after realizing he couldn't convince her by reasoning with her, he was going to stare her down. Like that was going to change anything. A smile spread over her cheeks when her eyes took in the sight of his arms and brooding shoulders, and she almost chuckled again, realizing once more with clarity how fond she was of him. Instead of telling him _no _again, Beth settled for trilling lovingly "You should sit down, honey."

"_You_ should start thinkin' straight 'bout this." He held a finger pointed at her.

"Shhh. Keep your voice down."

His mouth fell open and he gestured helplessly at nothing. "I'm being shushed by my girlfriend."

She said nothing and tilted her head at him. He could have sworn his heart melted when she patiently and expectantly held out her hand, palm down. It was a silent plea to make peace. With a sigh he moved closer, his own hand closing around hers and the bed dipped when he sunk down in it beside her.

"I couldn't just leave them, Daryl."

"I know. Might belong to someone else, though."

She squeezed his hand and scoffed. "Yeah, well, _someone _left them in a box to freeze in the rain."

Silence.

"Bastard," Daryl offered.

"Damn right."

It made a single quick breath, a tell-tale sign of a chuckle escape from between his lips. Leaning her body against his, Beth watched him, pressing and prodding her shoulder teasingly against his to goad more laughter from him. He glanced back at her, trying to hide a subtle smirk but the look on Beth's face told him she already knew she had him.

"Want to look at them again?"

He nodded after a few seconds. "Mmhm."

She bit her lip with excitement and crawled over to the other side of the bed, lying across it with her stomach down. Daryl crawled up beside her. Both leaning on their elbows with their shoulders and heads almost pressed together they stared down at the basket that was occupied by four sleeping puppy retrievers – three golden and one black.

"You'll get used to them, maybe even like them."

"I like the black one."

Beth chuckled, pressing her face against his throat. "Why am I not surprised?"

Warmth spread over his cheeks and ears. With a grin, he avenged her teasing by pushing her over to her back and covered her body with his own. Beth moaned fondly and with delightful surprise when he covered her throat with kisses.

"Daryl, I just showered."

He pulled back and stared down at her. Beth almost gulped when she met his now much darker and hungry eyes. Instantly a familiar warmth and hunger gathered in her own core.

"I can shower again."

With that she pulled him down, fingers buried in his hair and he met her lips eagerly.

**Fin!**

**Review in the magical box below!**

**~ C**


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